. >> the president spoke about selma, civil rights, seneca falls, stonewalled, where the modern gay rights movement was born. the couple of things happen. congress will have an impact on the administration. harry reid and mitch mcconnell of reaching an agreement on the filibuster, nothing profound, but that they will raise the debt ceiling to may 18. how will this impact the presidency? >> what the house did is a sign of what is ahead of us. they have not gone over the defeat from november. they have no leverage. they discovered they have the leverage and now have to wait to back down. this is a face-saving device to kick it down the road until may. the president is in a much stronger position in dealing with the republicans in the house. >> do you agree with that? >> i always respect colby's opinion, but the president, like any reelected president, essentially, absent a national event where he becomes a dramatic figure, watches his popularity be rationed out day- by-day. he is strong now. it is hard to believe that he will be as strong a year from now. what we are facing is not simply the